Thread: Walter Reed Hospital Commander's Muharram Greeting

Walter Reed Hospital Commander's Muharram Greeting

Posted by Asst Natl Dir Mellie B
December 22, 2010 at 11:14am

This email was sent out by Van Coots, MD. This email has been verified.

From: WRAMC [Walter Reed Army Medical Center] Announcements
Sent: Wed 12/8/2010 11:19 AM
To: WRAMC Master Mail List
Subject: WRHCS [Walter Reed Health Care Service] Commander's Muharram Greeting (UNCLASSIFIED)

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

WALTER REED,

Yesterday we began the first day of the Islamic New Year with the month
of Muharram, one of four sacred months out of the twelve months of the
year. This is a time of fasting, prayer, and reflection. I and the
command group wish each of you Muharram Mubarak.

Van Coots, MD

Copy of Letter can be seen HERE http://www.dianawest.net/Home/tabid/36/ ... -Reed.aspx

Info on Muharram Mubarak (Happy New Year) can be found HERE http://mosquepraiseallah.com/archives/1496

http://www.patriotactionnetwork.com/for ... hare_topic

Colonel Norvell V. Coots
Commander,
Walter Reed Health Care System



On 11 July 2008, Colonel Norvell V. Coots, became the commander of the Walter Reed Healthcare System, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, in Washington, DC. Just prior to this assignment he served as the commander of the Keller Army Community Hospital, West Point, New York, and as the 52nd Surgeon of the United States Military Academy.

The Walter Reed Healthcare system serves more than 150,000 beneficiaries in the Nation’s Capital, and consists of the Walter Reed Army Hospital, the DeWitt Army Hospital at Ft Belvoir, Virginia, the Kimbrough Ambulatory Care Center at Ft Meade, Maryland, and the DiLorenzo TRICARE Health Clinic at the Pentagon. Additionally, the system has primary care clinics which support several installations in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania.

He began his military career in the Medical Service Corps as a 67K, Medical Logistician. Born in Oklahoma and raised in Virginia and Washington, DC, he is a graduate of the Benedictine High School Military Institute in Richmond. He attended the United States Military Academy, and Howard University where he received his commission through ROTC.

He is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine, Oklahoma City, OK. He performed a Transitional Internship at William Beaumont Army Medical Center, El Paso, TX, and, after a two-year tour as a general medical officer in Korea, completed a Dermatology residency at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. His previous assignments include: Commander, Andrew Rader Army Health Clinic, Ft. Myer, Virginia; Medical Staff Officer, Directorate of Health Policy and Services at the Office of the Surgeon General; Deputy Commander for Clinical Services, USA MEDDAC, Heidelberg, Germany; Deputy V Corps Surgeon, Heidelberg, Germany; Chief, Dermatology Service, 67th Combat Support Hospital and USA MEDDAC, Wuerzburg, Germany; Commander, 150th Medical Detachment (OB), Camp Carroll, Republic of Korea; Platoon Commander, 245th Medical Company (CLR), 45th Infantry Division, OKARNG; Commander, 249th Medical Detachment (BB), 85th Medical Battalion, Fort Meade, MD; Commander, 212th Medical detachment (OB), JTF-Alpha, Republic of Honduras; Services Officer, 702nd Medical Company (CLR), 85th Medical Battalion, Fort Meade, MD; Services Officer, Expandable Platoon Leader, and Adjutant, 10th Combat Support Hospital (10th MASH), 85th Medical Battalion, Fort Meade, MD.

Colonel Coots is a Diplomate of the American Board of Dermatology and a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology. He holds an active membership in the American College of Physician Executives, the National Medical Association, the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States, the Association of Military Dermatologists, and the Washington D.C. Dermatological Society. He is a graduate of the Army War College with a Master’s Degree in Strategic Studies, and is an alumnus of the Interagency Institute for Federal Health Care Executives. His awards and decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Meritorious Service Medal (4 OLC), the Army Commendation Medal, the Army Achievement Medal (1OLC), the Korean Service Medal, the Global War on Terrorism medal, and the Order of Military Medical Merit. He has been awarded the Surgeon General’s “Aâ€

Did he send a Chanukah and Christmas email as well? If so, I don't have a problem with this. If not, I have a HUGE problem with it.

Walter Reed - UPDATE!!

Walter Reed Hospital: We send e-mail messages out for all the holidays
Kerry Picket
Published on December 22, 2010

Commander Col. Van Coots of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center found his office phone ringing furiously off the hook on Wednesday. Activists read from blog sites http://www.patriotactionnetwork.com/top ... hare_topic that he sent an e-mail to his staff and patients recognizing the Islamic new year.

"It was a message sent entirely out on Walter Reed Army Medical Center announcements to my staff just letting people know that this was the Islamic new year and wishing everyone Muharram Mubarak," Colonel Coots told me on Wednesday.

What may have been unknown to these blogs, however, according to Colonel Coots himself, was that he previously sent out a Hanukkah message a few weeks ago and plans to send a Christmas message to both staff and patients tomorrow. He also mentioned he sends out messages for all the "major holidays" including: the Fourth of July, Ramadan, Thanksgiving, and Rosh Hashanah.

"First and foremost this was a message to my command group, so somehow or another it got forwarded to the outside, but that's neither here nor there. But this is simply a message from the commander to the commanders troops," said the Colonel. "It's nothing more than that. And I noticed there are number of websites that have been really taking this on and have really gone viral and crazy with it. That is what is beyond my understanding."

Below is the e-mail Colonel Coots sent out on December 8:

From: WRAMC [Walter Reed Army Medical Center] Announcements
Sent: Wed 12/8/2010 11:19 AM
To: WRAMC Master Mail List
Subject: WRHCS [Walter Reed Health Care Service] Commander's Muharram Greeting (UNCLASSIFIED)

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

WALTER REED,

Yesterday we began the first day of the Islamic New Year with the month of Muharram, one of four sacred months out of the twelve months of the year. This is a time of fasting, prayer, and reflection. I and the command group wish each of you Muharram Mubarak.

Van Coots, MD

Classification: UNCLASSIFIED
Caveats: NONE

"This e-mail was sent out as you can see on that one website as an announcement from Colonel Coots to the staff, because we do have staff members and patients who are Muslim and he always recognizes religious holidays, Jewish faiths, Christian faiths, and the Muslim faith," said Terry Goodman deputy spokesman for Walter Reed Army Medical.

"It was just a holiday to those Muslims to have a great new year," he said.

Mr. Goodman continued, "He feels that he should recognize when there is significant date or time frames of those religions. We sent out a happy Hanukkah message. It went out a few weeks ago for our patients and staffers of the Jewish faith and our Christmas message will be going out tomorrow."

http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/wat ... ll-holida/

All I can say is WELL DONE PATRIOTS!!!!

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